System and method for downgrading applications

ABSTRACT

Disclosed herein is a technique for downgrading applications to placeholder applications in order to free up storage space in a user device. Based on a variety of heuristics, a number of installed applications are identified as candidates for a downgrade. The downgrading of the identified applications involves creating a placeholder application for each of the identified applications. The identified applications are temporarily deleted while keeping the user data associated with the applications intact and the placeholder applications are installed.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims the benefit of U.S. ProvisionalApplication No. 62/171,969, entitled “SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR DOWNGRADINGAPPLICATIONS,” filed Jun. 5, 2015, the content of which is incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety for all purposes.

FIELD

The described embodiments set forth a technique for downgrading anapplication to a placeholder application in order to free up space on auser device.

BACKGROUND

Generally, users tend to load their devices with large amounts of data(e.g., music, pictures, movie, etc.). At some point, there may not beenough storage space remaining in a user device to allow additional datato be loaded or processes requiring additional space (e.g., softwareupdates) to be performed. As a result, critical updates cannot beperformed on the user device, which can degrade the performance of theuser device and the user's overall satisfaction with the process.Consequently, there is a need for a system that is capable of freeing upstorage space in a manner that is transparent to the user whilepromoting the best user experience possible.

SUMMARY

Representative embodiments set forth herein disclose various techniquesfor downgrading applications to placeholder applications in order tofree up storage space in a user device. When sufficient storage spacedoes not exist for a particular process (e.g., a software update) to beperformed on the user device, 1) a number of applications that can bedowngraded are identified, and 2) the identified applications aredowngraded and temporarily deleted. The downgrading of the identifiedapplications involves creating a placeholder application for each of theidentified applications. More specifically, the placeholder applicationincludes files that represent the corresponding identified application,however, the placeholder application occupies less storage space on theuser device (in comparison to the complete application). According tosome embodiments, the identified applications are temporarily deleted,but the user data associated with the applications remains intact whilethe placeholder applications are installed. Because the placeholderapplications occupy less storage space in comparison to the identifiedapplications, sufficient storage space can be freed up for theparticular process to be performed.

This Summary is provided merely for purposes of summarizing some exampleembodiments so as to provide a basic understanding of some aspects ofthe subject matter described herein. Accordingly, it will be appreciatedthat the above-described features are merely examples and should not beconstrued to narrow the scope or spirit of the subject matter describedherein in any way. Other features, aspects, and advantages of thesubject matter described herein will become apparent from the followingDetailed Description, Figures, and Claims.

Other aspects and advantages of the embodiments described herein willbecome apparent from the following detailed description taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings that illustrate, by way ofexample, the principles of the described embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The included drawings are for illustrative purposes and serve only toprovide examples of possible structures and arrangements for thedisclosed inventive apparatuses and methods for providing wirelesscomputing devices. These drawings in no way limit any changes in formand detail that may be made to the embodiments by one skilled in the artwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the embodiments. Theembodiments will be readily understood by the following detaileddescription in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein likereference numerals designate like structural elements.

FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of different components of a systemconfigured to implement the various techniques described herein,according to some embodiments.

FIG. 2 illustrates a sequence diagram of a method for downgradingapplications that is performed by various components of a user device ofFIG. 1, according to some embodiments.

FIG. 3 illustrates a method that is carried out by a delete daemonimplemented by the user device of FIG. 1, according to one embodiment.

FIG. 4 illustrates a method for downgrading and restoring applicationsthat is carried out by various components implemented by the user deviceof FIG. 1, according to one embodiment.

FIG. 5 illustrates a detailed view of a computing device that can beused to implement the various components described herein, according tosome embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Representative applications of apparatuses and methods according to thepresently described embodiments are provided in this section. Theseexamples are being provided solely to add context and aid in theunderstanding of the described embodiments. It will thus be apparent toone skilled in the art that the presently described embodiments can bepracticed without some or all of these specific details. In otherinstances, well known process steps have not been described in detail inorder to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the presently describedembodiments. Other applications are possible, such that the followingexamples should not be taken as limiting.

The embodiments described herein set forth techniques for freeing upstorage space in a user device by downgrading applications, whichinvolves temporarily deleting application bundles associated withapplications that are candidates for a downgrade without deleting theuser data associated with the applications. An application bundle caninclude an executable application and/or resources that are associatedwith the application. According to some embodiments, a variety ofheuristics (e.g., historical use of the application, size of theapplication, etc.) are utilized to identify applications that can bedowngraded. The application bundles associated with the identifiedapplications are deleted while minimizing the risk of destroying theuser data associated with the identified applications.

Accordingly, the techniques described herein provide a mechanism fordowngrading and temporarily deleting applications in order to free upstorage space in the user device in a manner that is transparent to auser of the user device. A more detailed discussion of these techniquesis set forth below and described in conjunction with FIGS. 1-5, whichillustrate detailed diagrams of systems and methods that can be used toimplement these techniques.

FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of different components of a system100 that is configured to implement the various techniques describedherein, according to some embodiments. More specifically, FIG. 1illustrates a high-level overview of the system 100, which, as shown,includes a user device 110 that can represent a device having limitedfile storage capacity such as a mobile computing device (e.g., aniPhone®, an iPad®). A processor 112, in conjunction with the memory 114,can implement an operating system (OS) that is configured to executevarious applications (e.g., native OS applications and userapplications), daemons, and other processes/services on the user device110. Daemons include processes that run as a background process ratherthan under direct control of the user of the user device 110. A filesystem in the OS (not otherwise illustrated in FIG. 1) handles thestorage of data files, applications, and files associated with the OS.

As shown in FIG. 1, the user device 110 can include a storage spacemanager (SSM) daemon 116, a delete daemon 118, a knowledge engine 120, alaunch services (LS) daemon 122, a digital media store (DMS) daemon 124,and a mobile installation (MI) daemon 126. The SSM daemon 116 representsa process that requires additional storage space or needs to free upadditional storage space in the user device 110. For example, the SSMdaemon 116 can represent a software update process, a backup restoreprocess, or any other process that requires additional storage space forthe process to be performed. The software update process can include anOS (e.g., iOS or other operating system) upgrade.

As shown in FIG. 1, the knowledge engine 120 represents a system thatgathers information from the user device 110 in order to makepredictions about a future behavior of the user device 110 (e.g.,applications that will be launched by the user, behavior pertaining topower management, etc.). In particular, the knowledge engine 120develops a model based on historical use of the user device 110. Theknowledge engine 120 tracks the user's behavior (e.g., whichapplications are launched and when) and learns how the user device 110is used over time. The knowledge engine 120 then constructs, based onthe user's behavior/use of the device, a statistical model of how likelyis it for a particular application to be launched over a period of time.The model can also be used to predict a good time to perform aparticular task (e.g., the software update).

According to one embodiment, based on information from the knowledgeengine 120, the delete daemon 118 constructs a list of applications thatcan be downgraded and/or temporarily deleted. The delete daemon 118 alsoreceives, from the DMS daemon 124, information regarding applications inthe list that are recoverable (i.e., can be re-downloaded) from adigital media store (e.g., iTunes® by Apple®). The DMS daemon 124interacts with the digital media store in order to determine therecoverable applications.

As shown in FIG. 1, the LS daemon 122 keeps track of applications thatare installed on the user device 110. The LS daemon 122 tracks whattypes of applications are installed on the user device 110 and/or thesize of the installed applications. For example, the installedapplications can include system applications, downloaded applicationsthat are downloaded from the digital media store, etc. The MI daemon 126handles the management of the installed applications and associated userdata, and the installation of placeholder applications and/or anytemporarily deleted applications.

FIG. 2 illustrates a sequence diagram of a method 200 for downgradingapplications that is performed by various components of the user device110, according to some embodiments. As shown in FIG. 2, at step 202, theSSM daemon 116 communicates a request for additional storage space tothe delete daemon 118. According to one embodiment, when the SSM daemon116 represents a software update process, the SSM daemon 116 determinesthat an update applicable for the user device 110 is available. The SSMdaemon 116 computes space requirements for the software update. Whensufficient storage space is not available for the software update, theSSM daemon 116 communicates the request for additional storage space tothe delete daemon 118. The request can include a total amount of storagespace required for the software update process.

At step 204, the delete daemon 118 deletes cached data associated withapplications/processes on the user device 110 in response to therequest. The delete daemon 118 also deletes cached files associated withthe digital media store (e.g., Application cached files), and requestsother subsystems to purge cached data (e.g., iTunes Match cached files).The cached data includes data that can be deleted without posing asignificant risk to the functioning of the user device 110. After thecached data is deleted, the SSM daemon 116 determines whether additionalstorage space is required for the software update process (e.g., becausethe required total amount of storage space has not been met). Whenadditional storage space needs to be freed, the SSM daemon 116determines that application downgrading needs to be performed to makeadditional storage space.

At step 206, the delete daemon 118 receives historical data from theknowledge engine 120. The historical data includes data regarding thehistorical use of the device. The historical data can include a varietyof heuristics that vary depending on the OS version associated with theuser device 110 on which the software update process is being performed.For example, the historical data can include information regardingapplications that the user has launched over a period of time and whenthe applications were launched. According to an embodiment, the deletedaemon 118 requests/queries the knowledge engine 120 to provide thehistorical data when application downgrading needs to be performed.

At step 208, the delete daemon 118 identifies applications that can bedowngraded based on the historical data. In particular, the deletedaemon 118 generates a list of applications to be downgraded based onthe historical data. For example, the list of applications can includeapplications that have not been used/launched by the user for aparticular period of time (e.g., 1-3 weeks) or are seldom used by theuser. According to some embodiments, the list of applications to bedowngraded is returned to the SSM daemon 116, which can identifyapplications that the user has used recently and remove thoseapplications from the list.

According to some embodiments, the delete daemon 118 identifiesapplications that can be downgraded based on the size of theapplications in addition to the historical data. The applications in thelist are sorted based on the least recently used application andweighted by the size of the application. By downgrading and temporarilydeleting the larger applications first, storage space can be madeavailable sooner; however, any large applications that have beenrecently used by the user are not deleted as doing so will negativelyimpact user experience. In some implementations, the delete daemon 118obtains an initial list of installed applications from the LS daemon 122in addition to the size of the applications. The delete daemon 118 canupdate the initial list to generate the list of applications to be thedowngraded. For example, the delete daemon 118 can remove, from theinitial list, any applications that the user has recently used and keepthe applications that the user has not used over a period of time.

At step 210, the delete daemon 118 receives a list of recoverableapplications from the DMS daemon 124. In particular, the delete daemon118 first constructs a list of applications to be downgraded based oninformation from the knowledge engine 120 and then consults the DMSdaemon 124 to ensure that each application in the list is recoverablefrom the digital media store. Once the delete daemon 118 receives thelist of recoverable applications, the delete daemon 118 generates anupdated list of applications to be downgraded, at step 212.

At step 213, the delete daemon 118 returns the updated list ofapplications to the SSM daemon 116. The SSM daemon 116 filters theupdated list of applications. In particular, the SSM daemon 116identifies applications that can be removed from the list. For example,if a particular application is not recoverable from the digital mediastore, the particular application is removed from the list ofapplications to be downgraded such that the updated list does notinclude the particular application. As such, the updated list includesapplications that have not been used by the user for a particular periodof time and are recoverable from the digital media store. After possibletrimming of the updated list, the SSM daemon 116 sends the updated listback to the delete daemon 118.

At step 214, the delete daemon 118 instructs the LS daemon 122 todowngrade each application in the updated list. The delete daemon 118communicates a request to downgrade the applications in the updated listto the LS daemon 122. In turn, the LS daemon 122 initiates a downgradeof each application in the updated list in response to the request, atstep 216.

According to some embodiments, the downgrading of the applications inthe updated list involves creating a placeholder application orplaceholder bundle for each application in the updated list. Theplaceholder application includes a set of files that are needed torepresent the corresponding application without producing a usableapplication. The set of files can include a file containingconfiguration data associated with the application, a file containinglocalization information associated with the application, and a copy ofthe application icon. In other words, the placeholder application is ashell of the corresponding application in the updated list.

According to some embodiments, the LS daemon 122 selects the set offiles that are needed to create each placeholder application, preservesthe set of files, and copies the set of files to a temporary storagelocation. After creating the placeholder applications, LS daemon 122instructs the MI daemon 126 to perform a number of operations fordowngrading the applications in the updated list. For each applicationin the updated list, the MI daemon 126 associates the user data with thecorresponding placeholder application in order to preserve the userdata. The MI daemon 126 replaces each application in the updated listwith the corresponding placeholder application. In particular, the MIdaemon 126 deletes each application in the updated list and installs thecorresponding placeholder application where the set of files associatedwith the placeholder application are copied from the temporary storagelocation to a storage location of the deleted application. In someembodiments, deleting the application involves deleting the applicationbundle that contains the executable binary code and/or resources (e.g.,resources provided by a developer) associated with the application. Insome embodiments, the process of downgrading and/or temporarily deletingof the applications and replacing the applications with the placeholderapplications is invisible and transparent to the user as the process isperformed during the software update.

According to some embodiments, the placeholder application representsthe corresponding application on the user device 110 in the form of anapplication icon on a user interface (UI) presented on the user device110. A number of UI interface elements can be utilized to provide avisual indication to the user that the corresponding application is notcurrently available/accessible (because it is in the process of beingdowngraded/deleted while the software update is being performed). Insome embodiments, the user device 110 remains functional during thesoftware update process so the visual indication specifies that thecorresponding application is present (i.e., in the form of theplaceholder application) albeit in a state that is not immediatelyaccessible. For example, the application icon associated with thecorresponding application that is being or is downgraded is present inthe UI and can be grayed out to provide a visual indication to the userthat the application is not accessible by the user. In some embodiments,a “waiting” message can be placed next to or over the icon to providethe visual indication. Other user interface elements can be utilized topresent the visual indication to the user without departing from thescope of the disclosure. In some embodiments, appearance of theapplication icon can remain unchanged but the user can be presented witha message that the application is not accessible when the user selectsthe application icon.

According to some embodiments, after the software update process iscompleted successfully (e.g., the OS of the user device 110 is upgradedto a new version), the DMS daemon 124 re-downloads all thedowngraded/deleted applications (i.e., applications for which theplaceholder applications were created) from the digital media store. TheLS daemon 122 identifies the re-downloaded applications and instructsthe MI daemon 126 to re-associate the user data with the re-downloadedapplications. When the user data is re-associated, the MI daemon 126deletes the placeholder applications and installs the re-downloadedapplications. In this manner, the creation of the placeholderapplications and the deletion of the applications associated with theplaceholder applications are carried out temporarily to make additionalstorage space available for the software update process. But, when thesoftware update process is completed, the original applications arerestored from the digital media store and are made available to theuser. In other words, the applications are immediately ready for usebecause the user data is kept intact during the software update processand is re-associated with the applications when the applications arere-installed. In some embodiments, while the applications are beingre-downloaded and re-installed, the grayed out application icon ispresented with a progress indicator (e.g., a progress circle) indicatinga status of the re-download/re-install. When the install is complete,the real application icon (i.e., non-grayed out icon) can be presentedto the user to indicate that the application is now available for use.

In some embodiments, the DMS daemon 124 includes a data migrator processthat is capable of running a number of plug-ins where each plug-inrecognizes a particular domain of data on the user device 110 andmigrates it to a new format understood by the new version of the OS. Thedata migrator process iterates through the installed applications asadvertised by the LS daemon 122 and identifies a number of applicationsthat are marked as downgraded applications. For each of the identifiedapplications, the DMS daemon 124 restores/re-downloads the applicationsfrom the digital media store. In some embodiments, the DMS daemon 124re-downloads the latest version of the applications that supports thenew OS version that the user device 110 is executing after the softwareupdate process. According to some implementations, the data migratorprocess can represent a separate system component/daemon that is notpart of the DMS daemon 124.

In some embodiments, the LS daemon 122 keeps track of applications thatare downgraded. In some embodiments, the LS daemon 122 maintains a listof downgraded applications to track the applications that aredowngraded. In some other embodiments, the file system keeps track ofapplications that are downgraded. In particular, a bit is set in themetadata of the file system associated with a particular application tomark the particular application as a downgraded application. In someimplementations, the LS daemon 122 can provide information regardingapplications that are downgraded based on the metadata of the filesystem.

In some cases, the DMS daemon 124 may not be able to restore aparticular application because the particular application is removedfrom the digital media store (e.g., due to legal requirements). Forexample, the DMS daemon 124 may have indicated that the particularapplication is recoverable (e.g., at step 210 of FIG. 2) but by the timethe software update was completed, the particular application wasremoved from the digital media store and may not recoverable any more.According to some embodiments, to obviate user dissatisfaction at notbeing able to recover the particular application, the user may bepresented with an option to select applications that the user wants todowngrade from the updated list generated at the step 212 of FIG. 2. Theuser can be presented with an indication (via a UI) that theapplications in the updated list are going to be downgraded/deleted andinaccessible for a particular period of time (e.g., during the softwareupdate process). The user can further be prompted to acknowledge andprovide approval for the software update process and/or the downgradingof application where the delete daemon 118 can allow the user to selectthe applications to be downgraded. The delete daemon 118 can thenrequest the LS daemon 122 to initiate the downgrade of the selectedapplications.

According to some embodiments, the restoration of the applications canbe triggered prior to the completion of the software update process. Forexample, when a user tries to launch an application that isdowngraded/deleted (i.e., by tapping/selecting the grayed out iconassociated with the application in the UI), the restoration of theapplication can be prioritized. In some embodiments, the application canbe re-downloaded instantly and made available for the user. In someembodiments, the user can be presented with a message (via a pop-up, forexample) that states that the application has to be or is beingdownloaded. In some other embodiments, the user can be presented with amessage that states that the application has been temporarily removed inorder to allow the user to update the software, and that the user cantry accessing the application at a later time.

According to some embodiments, rather than deleting the applicationsthat are identified as candidates for downgrade, the data associatedwith the application (e.g., the application bundle) can be compressedin-place on the user device 110. In some other embodiments, rather thandeleting the applications and re-downloading them from the digital mediastore, the applications can be uploaded to and re-downloaded from abackup storage system (e.g., iCloud storage by Apple®).

While FIG. 2 has been described from the perspective of a softwareupdate process, it will be appreciated that the components interact withone another in a similar manner to free up storage space for any otherprocess that requires additional storage space in the user device 110.

FIG. 3 illustrates a method 300 that is carried out by the delete daemon118 implemented by the user device 110 of FIG. 1, according to oneembodiment. As shown, the method 300 begins at step 302, where thedelete daemon 118 receives a request for additional storage space (fromthe SSM daemon 116, for example). At step 304, the delete daemon 118receives historical data associated with applications installed on theuser device 110 from the knowledge engine 120. For example, thehistorical data can include information regarding applications that havebeen launched and when. Based on the historical data and/or size of theapplications, the delete daemon 118 generates a list of applications tobe downgraded, at step 306. For example, any applications that have notbeen launched for a particular period of time can be included in thelist of applications to be downgraded.

At step 308, the delete daemon 118 receives a list of recoverableapplications (from the DMS daemon 124, for example). At step 310, thedelete daemon 118 generates an updated list of applications to bedowngraded based on the list of recoverable applications. For example,updated list of applications can indicate whether the applications arerecoverable and/or not recoverable from the digital media store.According to some embodiments, the delete daemon 118 can communicate theupdated list to the SSM daemon 116, which can identify applications thatcan be removed from the list. For example, applications that are notrecoverable from the digital media store can be removed from the updatedlist. At step 312, the delete daemon 118 communicates a request todowngrade each application in the updated list of applications to the LSdaemon 122. The LS daemon 122, in turn, initiates a downgrade of eachapplication in the updated list in response to the request.

FIG. 4 illustrates a method 400 for downgrading and restoringapplications that is carried out by various components implemented bythe user device 110 of FIG. 1, according to one embodiment. As shown,the method 400 begins at step 402, where the LS daemon 122 receives arequest to initiate a downgrade of an application (from the deletedaemon 118, for example). According to one embodiment, the applicationis selected as a candidate for the downgrade because the SSM daemon 116indicates that additional storage space is needed for a particularprocess to be performed. In response to the request, the LS daemon 122creates a placeholder application for the application, at step 404. Theplaceholder application includes a set of files that are needed torepresent the application (e.g., configuration files, localizationfiles, application icon, etc.) and requires less storage space than theapplication.

At step 406, the MI daemon 126 (as directed by the LS daemon 122)associates user data specific to the application with the placeholderapplication to ensure that the user data is not destroyed during thedowngrading/deleting process. At step 408, the MI daemon 126 deletes theapplication. In particular, the MI daemon 126 deletes the applicationbundle that includes the binary code and/or resources associated withthe application. At step 410, the MI daemon 126 installs the placeholderapplication and the user is presented with a grayed out application iconindicating that the application is not accessible.

At step 412, the DMS daemon 124 restores the deleted application (i.e.,re-downloads the deleted application from the digital media store.According to some embodiments, the restoration is performed after theparticular process has been successfully completed. At step 414, the MIdaemon 126 re-associates the user data with the restored application.

While various embodiments have been described for user devices havinglimited file storage capacity because storage space is generally morerestricted on such devices and these devices are more constrained interms of CPU and battery power resources, it will be appreciated thatthe embodiments described herein can be used for other types of devices,for example desktop computers, laptop computers, or other computingdevices.

FIG. 5 illustrates a detailed view of a computing device 500 that can beused to implement the various components described herein, according tosome embodiments. In particular, the detailed view illustrates variouscomponents that can be included in the user device 110 illustrated inFIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 5, the computing device 500 can include aprocessor 502 that represents a microprocessor or controller forcontrolling the overall operation of computing device 500. The computingdevice 500 can also include a user input device 508 that allows a userof the computing device 500 to interact with the computing device 500.For example, the user input device 508 can take a variety of forms, suchas a button, keypad, dial, touch screen, audio input interface,visual/image capture input interface, input in the form of sensor data,etc. Still further, the computing device 500 can include a display 510(screen display) that can be controlled by the processor 502 to displayinformation to the user (for example, email interface described herein).A data bus 516 can facilitate data transfer between at least a storagedevice 540, the processor 502, and a controller 513. The controller 513can be used to interface with and control different equipment throughand equipment control bus 514. The computing device 500 can also includea network/bus interface 511 that couples to a data link 512. In the caseof a wireless connection, the network/bus interface 511 can include awireless transceiver.

The computing device 500 also include a storage device 540, which cancomprise a single disk or a plurality of disks (e.g., hard drives), andincludes a storage management module that manages one or more partitionswithin the storage device 540. In some embodiments, storage device 540can include flash memory, semiconductor (solid state) memory or thelike. The computing device 500 can also include a Random Access Memory(RAM) 520 and a Read-Only Memory (ROM) 522. The ROM 522 can storeprograms, utilities or processes to be executed in a non-volatilemanner. The RAM 520 can provide volatile data storage, and storesinstructions related to the operation of the computing device 500.

The various aspects, embodiments, implementations or features of thedescribed embodiments can be used separately or in any combination.Various aspects of the described embodiments can be implemented bysoftware, hardware or a combination of hardware and software. Thedescribed embodiments can also be embodied as computer readable code ona computer readable medium. The computer readable medium is any datastorage device that can store data that can be read by a computersystem. Examples of the computer readable medium include read-onlymemory, random-access memory, CD-ROMs, DVDs, magnetic tape, hard diskdrives, solid state drives, and optical data storage devices. Thecomputer readable medium can also be distributed over network-coupledcomputer systems so that the computer readable code is stored andexecuted in a distributed fashion.

The foregoing description, for purposes of explanation, used specificnomenclature to provide a thorough understanding of the describedembodiments. However, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art thatthe specific details are not required in order to practice the describedembodiments. Thus, the foregoing descriptions of specific embodimentsare presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are notintended to be exhaustive or to limit the described embodiments to theprecise forms disclosed. It will be apparent to one of ordinary skill inthe art that many modifications and variations are possible in view ofthe above teachings.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for making storage space available in auser device, the method comprising: determining that at least oneapplication can be downgraded; creating a placeholder application forthe at least one application; associating, with the placeholderapplication, user data that is specific to the at least one application;deleting the at least one application; and installing the placeholderapplication.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that the atleast one application can be downgraded comprises: determining that theat least one application can be downgraded when the at least oneapplication has not been launched for a particular period of time. 3.The method of claim 1, wherein the placeholder application comprises aset of files that represents the at least one application.
 4. The methodof claim 3, wherein the set of files includes configuration dataassociated with the at least one application, localization informationassociated with the at least one application, and a copy of an iconassociated with the at least one application.
 5. The method of claim 1,wherein deleting the at least one application comprises: deleting anapplication bundle associated with the at least one application.
 6. Themethod of claim 5, wherein the application bundle comprises executablecode associated with the at least one application or one or moreresources associated with the at least one application.
 7. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising: generating a list of applications to bedowngraded in accordance with historical data associated with the userdevice, receiving a list of recoverable applications, wherein the listof recoverable applications includes a first set of applications thatare recoverable from a digital media store, generating, based on thelist of recoverable applications, an updated list of applications to bedowngraded, and identifying the at least one application that can bedowngraded from the updated list of applications.
 8. The method of claim1, wherein the at least one application is deleted to make the storagespace available to perform a particular process at the user device, themethod further comprising: when the particular process is complete:restoring the at least one application associated with the placeholderapplication, and re-associating the user data with the at least oneapplication.
 9. A user device, comprising: a processor configured tocause the user device to carry out steps that include: generating a listof applications to be downgraded in accordance with historical dataassociated with the user device, receiving a list of recoverableapplications, wherein the list of recoverable applications includes afirst set of applications that are recoverable from a digital mediastore, generating, based on the list of recoverable applications, anupdated list of applications to be downgraded, and downgrade at leastone application included in the updated list of applications.
 10. Theuser device of claim 9, wherein the historical data includes informationthat indicates when one or more installed applications were lastlaunched on the user device.
 11. The user device of claim 9, whereingenerating the updated list of applications to be downgraded comprises:removing, from the list of applications to be downgraded, a second setof applications that are not recoverable from the digital media store.12. The user device of claim 9, wherein downgrading the at least oneapplication in the updated list of applications comprises: creating aplaceholder application for the at least one application included in theupdated list of applications.
 13. The user device of claim 12, whereinthe steps further include: deleting the at least one applicationincluded in the updated list of applications; and installing theplaceholder application associated with at least one application. 14.The user device of claim 13, wherein the placeholder applicationcomprises a set of files that represents the at least one application.15. The user device of claim 14, wherein the set of files includesconfiguration data associated with the at least one application,localization information associated with the at least one application,and a copy of an icon associated with the at least one application. 16.The user device of claim 13, deleting the at least one applicationincluded in the updated list of applications comprises: deleting anapplication bundle associated with the at least one application.
 17. Theuser device of claim 16, wherein the application bundle comprisesexecutable code associated with the at least one application or one ormore resources associated with the at least one application.
 18. Anon-transitory computer readable storage medium configured to storeinstructions that, when executed by a processor included in a userdevice, cause the user device to free up storage space for a particularoperation, by carrying out steps that include: creating a placeholderapplication for at least one application that is a candidate for adowngrade; associating user data specific to the at least oneapplication with the placeholder application; deleting the at least oneapplication; and installing the placeholder application.
 19. Thenon-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein theplaceholder application includes configuration data associated with theat least one application, localization information associated with theat least one application, and a copy of an icon associated with the atleast one application.
 20. The non-transitory computer readable storagemedium of claim 18, wherein deleting the at least one applicationcomprises: deleting an application bundle associated with the at leastone application, wherein the application bundle comprises an executablecode associated with the at least one application or one or moreresources associated with the at least one application.